Soggy Delights At Mettawa Manor
This past weekend was a rainy one, but Judy and I weren’t going to let that deter us from going to a garden tour of Mettawa Manor, organized especially for members of Lurie Garden.
Mettawa Manor is the home of Bill Kurtis and Donna LaPietra, documentary filmmakers with long and distinguished careers in the television industry. You may have heard Bill Kurtis as the announcer on the NPR show, “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me.” Donna LaPietra is also Board Chair and a founding member of the Millennium Park Foundation (Lurie Garden is a part of Millennium Park).
Blue Irises were still in flower along the drive to the house. The light was pretty terrible, but what can you do?
Many of the documentaries made by Bill Kurtis and Donna LaPietra examined aspects of nature and the environment. Their environmental commitment has deeply informed how they developed the land around their home.
Inside the house, we settled down with coffee and muffins and listened to the owners talk about the history of the property and what they have done with it. They were remarkably friendly and welcoming. Gradually, they have purchased surrounding land until the grounds total 65 acres, most of which is under a conservation easement that guarantees its future as open space.
Other projects close to Kurtis’s heart include a 15-acre restored prairie. He speaks passionately about the potential of prairie grasses to combat climate change through carbon sequestration. He is working with the Land Institute to test varieties of perennial wheat, which could have enormous environmental benefits, on his property.
After we learned about Mettawa Manor and got acquainted, Bill Kurtis took us in shifts for tours of the grounds. He seemed to take genuine pleasure in showing people around and talking about plants in that resonant news anchor voice. The vehicle used was a sort of elongated electric golf cart. All the passengers held umbrellas to ward off the continuing rain.
Those not touring the grounds were shown around the house by Donna LaPietra, who was full of amusing and fascinating stories.
Here’s the edge of the prairie planting. I would have loved to walk through it but the wet was excessive.
We passed an appealing herb garden.
These small hills were inspired by the Cahokia Mounds in southern Illinois (the remains of an indigenous Mississippi Valley civilization). They offer an elevated view of the surrounding grounds.
A yellow garden, featuring Yarrow and a golden Smokebush.
A bronze garden.
Sometimes on a garden tour like this you get the feeling that the owners are merely checkbook gardeners. This is not the case at Mettawa Manor, where Bill Kurtis can name the species of just about every tree. They do have a full-time gardener, though, and as many as three seasonal staff. Given the size and numerous features of the property, that doesn’t sound like much.
Other features here include two ponds (home to some of the biggest frogs and crayfish I have ever seen) and an oak-hickory forest from which buckthorn and other invasives have been painstakingly removed. There’s also an orchard meadow I would love to see in springtime.
Closer to the house there is a walled English garden featuring clipped boxwood, roses, and large mixed borders.
I was struck by all the Climbing Hydrangea, which I always thought was difficult to grow in this area.
A small patio carpeted with fragrant thyme.
Another shady patio, closer to the house.
Judy and I are grateful to the staff at Lurie Garden for organizing this event, which was delightful despite the rain. We even got to take home some of honey from Bill’s beehives.
If you were a member of the Lurie Garden, you too would have been invited to this special tour, along with other events throughout the year. Come on now, if you work in the Loop and visit the Lurie, you know you should be a member. Just follow this link to make it happen.
Mettawa Garden will also be open to the public on July 22 of this year, as part of the Garden Conservancy open days. Click this link for tickets and more information. Judy and I definitely intend to go back, to see what might be blooming in mid-summer.
gardeninacity 
What a marvelous, if soggy, day you had! I was lucky enough to be there some years ago as part of a painting class organized through the Botanic Garden. I grew up listening to that wonderful voice giving the news, of course. What a delight to be driving in to the estate that afternoon and find the owner of that voice up to his hips in a pond he was busy cleaning. Later he walked around, commenting kindly on each person’s painting. It was a wonderful afternoon I’ll never forget. You’ve brought it all back to me!
They are such genuinely nice people, and they really seem to like opening their home to new people.
Yes, they sure are.
That mound is interesting. I saw something similar in a park in western San Jose, but I doubt that it was inspired by anything. It was probably a pile of soil excavated from the Mineta Freeway. The mound in your picture would not impress me any more, except for its origin.
I’ve actually been to Cahokia Mounds, so I was struck by the similarity (in a smaller scale).
For a mound of soil, it is surprisingly impressive in the sense that someone made the effort to be accurate with the proportions and shape. It could have been just another heap of soil.
What a gorgeous estate. It rivals any garden I’ve seen in the UK (which I’ll bet they’ve visited often!).
One thing puzzled me given your note about their careful removal of invasives. You showed a picture of a swath of yellow Iris -was it Iris pseudacorus? That species is an awful thug. Beautiful, but invasive.
I’ll have to ask about those Irises.
Thanks for going in the rain and sharing with us. Gorgeous gardens – all of them. But, I especially love the trimmed boxwoods – gorgeous. 🙂
I’m generally not a big fan of Boxwoods, but I did like the ones at Mettawa Gardens.
What a great tour and garden..even in the rain….imagine what it will look like on a sunny summer’s day!
Yes, I’m looking forward to that!
What a shame about the rain; it looks like a garden where one would like to linger.
We’ll be back.
How nice to have a personal motorized tour of such a large garden. I too was wondering about that yellow iris. It is beautiful but scary. I love the idea of a big indian mound where you can look out over a large part of the garden. The herb garden is giving me visions.
The herb garden was really nice. I will try to find out about the Iris.
This is a beautiful garden. I love the restraint and focal points. I am happy the rain did not deter you.
We’re both really happy that we went.
Looks like a fabulous place to explore. Nice the owners are so conservation-minded. Love the herb garden.
I really admire their sense of mission when it comes to the environment.
Really beautiful gardens. I love gardens in the wet, the colors seem more vibrant–that is if you can see them through rain-sprinkled glass lenses. 🙂
I never thought about gardens in the rain like that.
I visited this estate garden with the Wis. Hardy Plant Society on a day that set a record for rainfall. But still an amazing visit and such a generous couple.
I guess visiting this garden in the rain is a tradition! They are great hosts, with or without rain.
It looks like a wonderful garden and I do hope the weather plays along next time you visit. I think Irises look best in the rain, even though it does spoil the petals a bit.
An interesting thought that Irises look better in the rain.
That’s quite a place. I’m glad I’m not the one clipping the hedges though.
So am I.
Yes, yes! I have heard Bill’s resonant voice many times. What a place, even if you did have to tour in the rain.
He has a great voice, doesn’t he?
Sure does! Wonderful you could see his place, and wonderful what he and his wife do.
What a beautiful place! I especially like the English walled garden!
It was pretty nice, even in the rain.
What a treat to have a tour of the garden and house. It looks like an amazing place. (Imagine having a grand house built for you as a present!!) Thanks for sharing.
Where’s my wedding-present house, is what I want to know.
What an astonishing garden, I simply can’t imagine having all that space, lucky you enjoying the tour, I would, without a doubt become a member! xxx
I would kill to have that much space. Well, not literally. I think.
Rain didn’t detract from this lovely garden. I wish I could experience that thyme patio while having a nice morning cup of coffee.
That’s what Judy said. Even more so on a warm, sunny day.
Thanks for sharing this. Lucky you to get to visit.
Yes, we’re pretty happy we got to go.
Amazing garden, what a great visit. A full time gardener and 3 seasonal ones! Oh what I could do with all these gardeners. Or even 1 gardener, apart from one mad mower man.
I could use a full time gardener in my own garden, though I have less than 1/4 acre (closer to an eighth, probably).
Hello Jason, it’s a shame the rain put a dampener on the day, but I’m sure you’ll be going back. Three staff to tend grounds that large must mean they’re always busy. I was very taken by the room system comparison.
The owners do a bunch of work as well, but I’m sure the garden keeps them all busy.